Gortys (Arcadia)
Gortys ( Greek Γόρτυς ) was an ancient city on the Lousios River in the Greek countryside of Arcadia ( Peloponnese ).
When the city was founded is unclear. 367 BC At the time of the founding of Megalopolis , they gave part of their inhabitants there. The place became famous for its Asklepieion . The earliest coin find from this sanctuary dates from the 6th century BC. BC, the latest from the 3rd century AD.
The main attraction of the place in antiquity was a temple from the middle of the 4th century BC. BC, which consisted entirely of Pentelic marble and contained a cult image and other figures from the hand of Scopas . As can be deduced from the numerous weapons finds and the words of Pausanias , Asklepios was worshiped here as a warlike god. The best preserved is an extensive thermal bath with the oldest hypocaust built in Greece , which could accommodate around 20 to 30 bathers at the same time.
literature
- Jürgen W. Riethmüller: Asklepios: sanctuaries and cults . tape 2 . Verlag Archeology and History, Heidelberg 2005, p. 194-197 .
- Christopher Mee, Antony Spawforth: Greece. To Oxford Archaeological Guide . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2001, pp. 280-283 .
- William Frank Wyatt: Gortys or Kortys (eg Hesychius) Arkadia, Greece . In: Richard Stillwell et al. a. (Ed.): The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 1976, ISBN 0-691-03542-3 .
Web links
Coordinates: 37 ° 32 '23 " N , 22 ° 2' 44" E